In Guards We Trust

  ***

  Jason arrived at his villa later that evening to find Claymore standing outside in the road alongside his horse.

  ‘At last you’re home, my lord. It’s the young lord Philippe. He has borrowed one of your pistols and a dagger. He said he intends to return to France through the Devil’s Orifice in order to attempt to rescue his father.’

  ‘How long ago did he leave?’

  ‘About half an hour ago, my lord.’

  ‘On foot, I presume? Or did he borrow the Earl’s horse.’

  ‘On foot, my lord.’

  Jason mounted his horse and he trotted down the cobbled street which zigzagged downwards towards the Rue de la Valley, the main road to Bella Vista. Upon reaching the main road he switched to riding at a gallop. It was not long before he could make out a lone figure walking on the road in the darkness ahead of him. Philippe only turned to look at the rider of the horse as Jason drew alongside him.

  ‘You can have your dagger and pistol if that’s what you came for?’ Philippe offered.

  ‘I am here to fetch you. Your father’s wish was for you to stay in Montuga with the king.’

  ‘He is your king. He is not my king. I am French, not Montugan. I belong in France.’

  ‘You belong where your father says you belong. Your father determined that the king would have custody of you,’ Jason responded without disguising his annoyance.

  ‘My father may well be dead now thanks to your king. But if he is alive, I have to save him or die trying.’

  ‘I have no idea whether your father is alive or not. But I do know that the country you are trying to return to is not the same as the one you left. Republican France is a dangerous and unstable place and you are likely to be killed long before you find out anything about your father.’

  ‘You forget that I lived as a commoner here in Montuga for several months. I can easily do so in France. No one will know who I am.’

  ‘And you, my boy, forget how quickly the royal guards found you and your father, despite your new identity. It will not be different in France. A young boy travelling on his own will stick out like a sore thumb.’

  ‘I’m not a boy. I am thirteen.’

  ‘You will be noticed as soon as you reach France. You will be reported to the authorities.’

  Philippe stopped walking and turned to face Jason.

  ‘Prince Ruan tells me that you were in the royal navy once and so were many of your sailors. Could you not select a few suitable men? We could slip into France as a raiding party. No-one need know that any of you comes from Montuga. We can rescue my father. The two of us can then escape to Spain or Genoa while you and your men return to Montuga. The French will blame it on the French royalists.’ Philippe’s voice revealed a hint of excitement tempered by a ration of desperation.

  Jason alighted from the horse and walked alongside Philippe. He put his arm around the boy.

  ‘I lost my mother when I was not much younger than you. She was murdered by pirates. My father took it badly. He became a completely different person. A stranger. I know you will not think it is the same, but I know what it is like to lose both parents. When I saw you on the day your father had been arrested, I wanted to do something to help. I considered launching some rescue mission in France. But I realised that such a mission is simply not feasible. A group of unfamiliar men arriving in any part of France in these times will arouse suspicion. The republicans will be fiercely protective of their new state. They will surely arrest any strangers lurking about in France on the suspicion that they might be Royalists or their supporters. Apart from that,’ Jason added, ‘I also have several critical duties which require my presence here in Montuga.’

  ‘Maybe you’re too afraid,’ Philippe declared. Jason removed his arm from around Philippe and grabbed the boy’s shirt firmly.

  ‘Listen here you little shit. You have no cause to presume that I am afraid simply because I refuse to risk my life or the lives of my men in a lost cause which does not concern any of us.’

  ‘I’m sorry,’ the boy stammered softly, his eyes wide.

  ‘I will only accept your apology if you agree to come back to Monte Vista with me.’

  ‘What if I don’t?’ inquired Philippe cautiously.

  ‘I’ll drag you home, and when we get there, I will give you a jolly good hiding on your bare behind with this horsewhip. You are not too old for a little discipline.’

  As the words escaped his lips, Jason was annoyed to realise that those were not his words, but the words of this father. He had broken a childhood promise he had made to himself that he would be different if he were ever required to discharge any parental responsibilities.

  ‘I’ll go with you if I can stay in your villa. I do not wish to live under the same roof as the man who handed my father over to the revolutionaries.’

  ‘Did it ever occur to you that the king had no choice? Both of you fled to a country which is bound by a treaty not to afford sanctuary to any enemies of France. By staying in Montuga instead of leaving it immediately, you both had a hand in your own misfortune.’

  Philippe glared at Jason without replying.

  After a few moments, Jason continued. ‘As far as staying at the villa is concerned, that is up to the king. If the king permits it, you may stay at the villa when I am there or when the Earl of Somerset is there. If either of us is away, you will have to stay at the palace.’

  ‘What if I come to sea with you or the Earl? You could train me to be a naval officer. Like my father was when he was younger.’

  ‘If the king permits it, I would be honoured to assist you to follow in your father’s footsteps. Have you been to sea before?’

  ‘No,’ Philippe replied gingerly. ‘But I’m a quick learner and I have great eyesight,’ he added eagerly. A thought occurred to Jason.

  ‘What about your education?’

  ‘I’m a commoner now. We commoners get along perfectly well without education,’ Philippe grinned.

  ‘There is nothing wrong with being a commoner if that is how you were born. Best you accept, however, that you were born a noble. I will have to arrange for you to be educated on board. One of my officers is a former teacher. He has a considerable collection of books on board. More than enough for you to get on with.’ He paused for a second. ‘What did your father do after he left the navy?’

  ‘He took over grand papa’s wine production at the chateau. He also was also appointed by the king as an officer in charge of managing the forced conscription of the commoners in our area. He hated the job and he was hated by the commoners for doing it. Especially when their sons did not return from war. Not a rare occurrence, Papa said. That is why the revolutionaries made sure we were close to the top of the list of people to be eliminated.’

  ‘Yes. Unfortunately a position to which one is appointed by a king is not one from which one can easily resign.’ It was only after he uttered those words that he realised that the same words applied equally to him.

  ‘There’s one more thing,’ Philippe added. ‘There’s a dog we brought with us from France to Montuga. We left him on the farm when the royal guards came to take us to King Julien. Can he stay with us? He’s a sheepdog. And he’s particularly intelligent. You will like him.’

  ‘Alright,’ Jason replied hesitantly. ‘As long as he is no trouble.’ Jason knew, however, that he did not have it in him to deny a child who had recently lost his father the comfort which a pet could offer.